Do you believe that beauty is in the eye of the beholder? Many of us have the idea that a person’s attractiveness is purely subjective or that human beauty is up for interpretation.

Believe it or not, these ideas are fairly outdated—by 2,400 years! There is actually hard science behind what we perceive as attractive.

Pythagoras was the first to consider the math behind what humans consider “beautiful.” He came up with the idea of Phi, an irrational number from which he derived the Golden Ratio. This ratio, 1:1.618, is believed to be the most aesthetically pleasing to the human eye.

This Golden Ratio is overwhelmingly present in our everyday lives. You can find it in the vein patterns in leaves, the shape of seashells and the spiral patterns found in pinecones and sunflower petals. Art and architecture is also littered with the Golden Ratio. Ever wonder why the Parthenon is touted as an architectural masterpiece? The entire structure was designed based on the Golden Ratio!

In more recent years, this research has been extended to facial beauty. Dr. Stephen Marquardt, a facial reconstructive surgeon who deals primarily with trauma patients, has uncovered the science behind a “perfect” face!

In a research study in which he analyzed facial beauty across cultures and time periods, Dr. Marquardt discovered a fascinating pattern: the human face is covered in the Golden Ratio! That’s right—for some reason, our idea of facial beauty actually involves a subconscious understanding of phi!

Using the Golden Ratio, Marquardt created a “Golden Mask” that serves as a blueprint for the perfect human face. From Nefertiti to Marilyn Monroe to Angelina Jolie, known beauties from different times and cultures fit the mask almost perfectly

It appears that the subjective art of facial beauty is actually based on defined mathematical concepts. What do you think? Is beauty truly scientific?

See the Phi in action in this video! Watch as the Golden Mask and Photoshop are used to make an average face look like a model’s.

Click the link below if you’re interested in finding out how well you fit the Golden Mask!

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